As my day unfolds, I find my thoughts drifting back to the pure joy of my childhood, when I would lose myself in Choose Your Own Adventure books. Back then, I held the power to shape the narrative, flipping back and forth through the pages, crafting a story that could lead to either triumph or disaster—all depending on my decisions.
In much the same way, ReLeaf has transformed my life into an open-ended adventure. But this time, it’s not just a story bound within the pages of a book—it’s real life. The choices I make now have tangible, sometimes immediate, impacts on my surroundings. Just as I once decided whether to confront a dragon or sneak into a castle, now I choose which plants will thrive in specific locations or how to optimize the composting process to enrich the soil.
The thrill of uncertainty, the joy of discovery, and the satisfaction of watching my decisions come to life in the verdant growth around me—these feelings make my experience with ReLeaf feel like a living, breathing Choose Your Own Adventure story.
But instead of turning a page to reveal the outcome, I watch as nature itself unfolds the narrative, shaped by our shared decisions. From a rooftop garden feeding a local restaurant to a vertical garden enhancing the urban landscape, every ReLeaf project is a chapter in an ever-evolving story. A story that grows and changes with every plant that flourishes, every seed that takes root.
In these reflective moments, I marvel at how far we’ve come. From the simple fantasies of childhood to intricate environmental systems, our adventure now holds the power to influence the world in meaningful ways. The nostalgia for those cherished books remains, but it is now intertwined with a deep amazement at what an open-ended adventure can truly be. In many ways, we are still children navigating a grown-up version of those beloved stories, making choices that shape the world we want to live in.